Video
Video Interview with AP from 113
While at a taping for Glory Time TV, the hip-hop talk show hosted by our friends in the group Blackara, I met French rap artist AP who kindly agreed to do an interview for my project. Currently promoting his first solo Album, Discret, AP originally started his career in the nineties as a member of the successful French rap group 113, and he is also a part of the rap collective Mafia K’1 Fry (K’1fry or “Cainfri” is verlan slang for “African”). Above, you can watch an excerpt from our interview.
Although 113’s talent has been celebrated with two Victoire de la Musique awards (similar to the American Grammys) and a gold album, the group also gained notoriety in 2005 when they, along with several other groups, were accused by over 200 members of the French government for fueling young rioters with incendiary lyrics. (To date, however, French government officials haven’t won any of the numerous lawsuits filed against rap artists.) While I won’t go into depth about why these accusations were misdirected, there are two really interesting points about this case, which have been reinforced by my conversations with AP and with others throughout my research.
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The Pulse on the Gulf
Compared to other forms of popular Mexican dance, Danzón is less about flair and improvisation, and more about control. In this intro to the 1991 Mexican film Danzón, a dance that may at first seem like little more than shuffling reveals itself as an elegant sequence of carefully controlled steps.
While Iʼm thankful to have dodged the Swine Flu with my health intact, Iʼm bummed to report that my project took a hit.
A few weeks ago I was looking forward to traveling to the historic port city of Veracruz to get an up-close look at one of Mexicoʼs most cosmopolitan styles of popular music: the Cuban-born Danzón. Every year, competitive Danzón teams from all over the country convene in a seaside ballroom in Veracruz—Mexicoʼs Danzón headquarters—for a weekend of cha-cha-chá-ing in front of a panel of judges.
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Country Harp and City Life
I met Juan Carlos, 18, on my first day of mariachi classes at the School of Mexican Music in Mexico City. We were pretty much friendly strangers for the first two months, since we sat on opposite sides of the classroom—me in the neatly-arranged row of guitarists in the front, him with the pack of macho guitarrón players who roamed freely in the back.
Juan Carlos’ natural knack for music could have made him the envy of the entire class. But he was way too likable, always greeting people with a warm saludo as they walked in the door, or helping them decipher their sheet music, to bring on anything but fuzzy feelings from the rest of us. What most impressed me was that despite his confidence, Juan Carlos was as new to the guitarrón as I was to Mexico.
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Rap Workshop at Espace Riquet
“They are crazy characters. They have grills… But don’t let that fool you.”
When my friend Magee McIlvaine first told me about the group Blackara, this is how he presented them… and I think it’s pretty much a perfect description. Yes, on the outside they have grills, chains, and all sorts of “typical” rapper paraphernalia, but anyone can tell you that these fun, intelligent, and community-oriented artists are anything but typical. Following the election in November, I wrote about X.V. and M.P. Blackara’s radio show and their involvement in France’s 2007 presidential election, and since then, these renaissance men have been constantly on the move. (Even our interview was filmed from the backseat of their car in between appointments!) From transitioning their weekly radio show into a live talk show on cable TV, to having a role in Luc Besson’s French action film B13 Ultimatum, and performing on a regular basis, it is no doubt that they are busy— but that never stops them from giving back.
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France’s International Hip-Hop Dance Scene— Interview with Storm
Juste Debout finalists: Dancers from the Chicago-based crew FootworKINGZ (FootworKINGZ.com)
Since arriving in September, I have been to street performances, workshops, conferences, festivals, battles and theatrical spectacles all dedicated to hip-hop dance, and I am always impressed by how many members of the international community come to France to watch and participate. In an earlier post I wrote about the diverse dancers I met at the Who is Who battle last September, and earlier this month, I witnessed France’s hip-hop dance fever on an even larger scale at the finals for the Juste Debout battle at Bercy Stadium. At Juste Debout (which lasted over 10 hours!), dancers who had previously cleared the preselection rounds in their home countries, came to Paris to compete in one of four main categories: hip-hop newstyle, popping, locking, and house dance. Since Juste Debout means “Just Standing” in English, this battle is only for “top” dancing (so no breaking), and these dancers were incredible! Click here to see official photos at the Juste Debout website.
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